Lamponidae

white tailed spiders
unidentified lamponid
Unidentified lamponiid from Castle Hill, Sydney
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Infraorder: Araneomorphae
Family: Lamponidae
Simon, 1893
Diversity
23 genera, 192 species
blue: reported countries (WSC)
green: observation hotspots (iNaturalist)

Lamponidae is a family of spiders first described by Eugène Simon in 1893.[1] It contains about 200 described species in 23 genera,[2] most of which are endemic to Australia, with the genus Centrocalia endemic to New Caledonia, and two Lampona species (L. cylindrata, L. murina) also occurring in New Zealand where they are commonly known as 'white-tailed spiders'. Lampona papua is endemic to New Guinea, where two otherwise Australian species (Centrothele mutica, Lamponova wau) also occur.

Genera

As of January 2026, this family includes 23 genera and 192 species. [2] The categorization into subfamilies follows Joel Hallan's Biology Catalog.

  • Lamponinae Simon, 1893
  • Pseudolamponinae Platnick, 2000

References

  1. ^ Simon, E. (1893). Histoire naturelle das araignées.
  2. ^ a b "Family Lamponidae Simon, 1893". World Spider Catalog. doi:10.24436/2. Retrieved 2026-01-18.
  • A relimitation and revision of the Australasian ground spider family Lamponidae (Araneae, Gnaphosoidea). Bulletin of the AMNH 245. PDF (56Mb) - Abstract

Further reading

  • Platnick, N.I. (2004). On a Third Group of Flattened Ground Spiders from Australia (Araneae, Lamponidae). American Museum Novitates 3462. PDF (Platylampona)